Pink is good for your health

The antioxidant that triggers the red colouring in cooked prawns, astaxanthin, also plays an important role in protecting human cells from damage.

Astaxanthin, the pink in prawns and salmon prevents the initiation of cancer cells in the tongue, oral cavity, large bowel, bladder, uterus, and breast. The astaxanthin in fish is of whatever stereoisomer the fish ingested.

[Stereoisomers are isomeric molecules whose atomic connectivity is the same but whose atomic arrangement in space is different. Enantiomers are two stereoisomers that are related to each other by a reflection: they are mirror images of each other, which are non-superimposable. Human hands are a macroscopic example of stereoisomerism.]

Astaxanthin, unlike some carotenoids, does not convert to Vitamin A (retinol) in the human body. Too much Vitamin A is toxic for a human, but astaxanthin is not. However, it is a powerful antioxidant; it is 10 times more capable than other carotenoids.

Astaxanthin has a peculiar chemical structure. Astaxanthin enhances the cellular membranes stability as it locates crosswise inside them. Astaxanthin is one of those important carotenoids and might be beneficial for nerve damage associated with age-related macular degeneration.

So next time you shop head for the fish counter pick up some prawns and a seafood dip or salmon for a meal that will improve your health.

Lucinda Ball

03/20/2008

Breast cancer

Nowadays, nutritionists recommend the consumer to consume isoflavone regularly for the purpose of cancer protection normally found in post-menopausal and people who have hormone imbalance. Compared to Pueraria mirifica Soya the western health food product has a lower benefit because it contains lower amount of phytoestrogens especially there is no miroestrol and its derivatives.

Researches confirm that these chemicals are potent anti-breast cancer, anti-prostate hyperplasia, anti-colon cancer, anti-osteoporosis and also anti-cardiovascular disease via the potent reduction of blood cholesterol and also anti-menopausal syndrome

A series of studies involving breast cell lines and the activity of Pueraria mirifica in vitro have been performed by the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Phramongkutklao College of Medicine, Bangkok, Thailand. These studies have shown that Pueraria mirifica root extract (Smith Naturals Co Ltd., Bangkok) has potent anti-estrogenic properties against aggressive cell cancer lines in vitro, especially the proliferative estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer lines (T47-D, MCF-7, and ZR-75-1) obtained from the MD Anderson Cancer Institute (Texas) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).Pueraria mirifica promotes fibroblasts in normal breast cells and inhibits estrogen-dependent breast cancer cells.

Another natural product is pomegranate. The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology research team presented two studies at an international conference in June 2001 indicating that pomegranate seed oil triggers apoptosis -- a self-destruct mechanism in breast cancer cells. Furthermore, pomegranate juice can be toxic to most estrogen-dependent breast cancer cells, while leaving normal breast cells largely unaffected. Estrogen is a hormone often prescribed to protect postmenopausal women against heart disease and osteoporosis.

Both natural products are restricted by the FDA although studies have not found them to be toxic and have been eaten for many years with no reported adverse re-actions.

Stomach Ulcers

There is a nasty little creature called Helicobacter pylori. This bacterium, typically helical, is believed to infect about 40–50% of the world’s population and was recently established as the main cause for more than 90% of duodenal ulcers and 80% of gastric ulcers H. pylori is generally believed to be acquired through contaminated food or water and from person to person by intimate contact although curry, hurry and worry are often blamed!

The pylori part of the name comes from the tendency of the bacteria to be most active near the pylorus, the sphincter at the base of the stomach that separates it from the uppermost part of the small intestine, the duodenum. The bacteria survive in the stomach’s acid bath by exuding urease, an enzyme that produces ammonia, which neutralizes the acid. Surrounded by this protective chemical “halo” of ammonia, they corkscrew themselves through the gastric and duodenal mucosa (mucous membrane) and attach themselves to the surface of the underlying epithelial cells. There they cause gastritis (an inflammation of the mucosa) and contribute to ulcer formation by thinning the mucosa and poisoning nearby cells with ammonia and other toxins. Infection with H. pylori is associated with virtually all cases of non erosive gastritis and all cases of peptic ulcer, and it is believed to be the primary cause of these diseases.

If you thought that simply cutting back on your favourite spicy food would do the trick, well, here’s something to chew on! Treating the symptoms may provide short-lived relief; but the most effective way to deal with stomach ulcers is to address the ‘root cause’. This is exactly what Active Manuka honey does. Manuka honey has unique properties that are sufficiently unknown about to apply a UMF factor to the product. UMF = Unique Manuka factor.

The key to dosage is to take as much honey as required to ease the discomfort or burning sensation. For most people, this will be as little as 1 teaspoon at a time. Take the honey when the burning sensation arises or aim for regular doses up to 30 minutes before meals.

Lucinda

08/03/2007

Sunburn

The condition we call sunburn occurs when incident UV radiation exceeds the protective capacity of melanin in the skin. UV radiation is divided into the UVA (380–315 nm), UVB (315–280 nm) and UVC (280-180 nm) sub-bands. Ozone in the Earth's atmosphere filters out a portion of this before it reaches the planet's surface. UVC is almost entirely eliminated by the atmosphere, but enough UVA and UVB penetrates it in large enough quantities that sunburn occurs. Snow reflects 80% of UV radiation and cause snow blindness

We do know that UV radiation can cause changes in DNA. Studies have shown that UV light causes breaks in the DNA chain. Remember that clouds do not block much UV light even on a heavily clouded day as much as 80% of UV light can be getting through.

Use sunscreen that has a sunburn protection factor (SPF). The SPF relates to the paraminobenzoic acid (PABA) in the sunscreen. The higher the number the greater the protection. The number of minutes generally required to sunburn for any particular individual can be multiplied by the factor to equal the number of safe minutes. Therefore, if it usually takes you 1 minute to burn it will now take 15, if the SPF factor is 15. Benzo-phenones block UV-A because they vibrate at the same frequency and absorb UVA in the same way as our natural melanin protects. Total blocks are such things as zinc oxide, which are not cosmetically acceptable unless you play cricket!

If you cannot purchase PABA then natural food sources are blackstrap molasses, bran, brewer's yeast, eggs, milk, rice, wheat germ, and whole grains. I find that one 100mg tablet of PABA keeps my skin from going red and heating up but since I am red headed the best advice is for me to stay out of direct sunlight.

Lucinda Ball

07/22/2007

Inguinal hernia

Inguinal hernias are protrusions of abdominal cavity contents through the inguinal canal. They are very common and their repair is one of the most frequently performed surgical operations.

A few researchers now believe that all direct hernias and many indirect hernias are a symptom of a congenital deficiency of collagen, the major structural fiber in connective tissue. Tissue, and the tendons themselves, is made from a protein molecule called collagen; interestingly in general the more collagen there is in the joint of meat, the tougher it is! Slow cooking melts the collagen to form water-soluble gelatine.

Affecting a cure always means surgery. However since hernia repair is usually the first operation a trainee will undertake and it involves cutting there are risks. I am going to suggest an alternative but just as doctors make fatal mistakes I want you to check out what you can on wikipedia on the dangers of my vegetable cure and on any medication you are taking for I am not taking on the responsibility for your fatality however small the risk in my opinion.

I just have that suspicion that vitamin K might effect a cure and spinach has loads of it. So how did I make a cure within 24 hours. I made it first buying 2 pounds (1 Kilo) of frozen spinach. I put half of it in an oven and warmed it up sufficiently to cook a raw egg that I laid on it. When the egg was cooked I took the spinach out of the oven and ground pepper over it and ate it all.

At night the last thing I did before dropping off to sleep was to push my protruding intestine back in, where it will stay until you let gravity push it out again when you stand up.

Next day some 9 hours later the hernia was fixed although next day I ate the other half! please don't eat much else otherwise you might not form a "spinach plug"! That was six months ago and I have coughed quite hard and eaten a tin of baked beans since! For me it worked. If you try it at your own risk why not tell me if it worked for you so that together we can help others?

Lucinda Ball

06/22/2007

Type 2 diabetes.

Ice cream particularly the cheaper brands are made from about 12% whey.
Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained; it is a by-product of the manufacture of cheese and has several commercial uses. Researchers at Lund University in Sweden discovered that whey appears to stimulate insulin release. Writing in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition they also discovered that whey supplements can help regulate and reduce spikes in blood sugar levels among people with type 2 diabetes by increasing Insulin secretion.

So if you have been diagnosed with a pancreatic disorder then consider this little idea to see if it works for you or go on the hunt for whey supplements.

Who would have thought that cheap ice cream could be just the right medicine!

Careless worrying is not healthy

As we are being asked by Government to take responsibility for our own “carbon footprint” perhaps we should reflect on some little known facts brought to us by Mr. G.E. Miller of Battle in Sussex England through the Open University’s science of Climate programme concerning the way carbon dioxide concentration changes in the atmosphere and the resulting change in the mean global temperature (mgt) over a period of 170,000 years.
If we were to plot the evidence left for us by leaves and trees held in fossil cores-samples the graph would show a close correlation between carbon dioxide quantity parts per million by volume [ppm (vol)] in the atmosphere and the change in average global temperature.
Over a period of about 135,000 years, the mgt runs from –6c at 192 ppm (vol) of carbon dioxide to +2c at 312 ppm (vol) corresponding to a world mainly covered in ice to one with rampant vegetation. Going back 150,000 years there was little or no vegetation to use up the carbon dioxide and it therefore increased.
The world’s temperature takes about 2,000 to 4,000 years to catch up with the carbon dioxide
causing it. For the next 10,000 to 12,000 years carbon dioxide and temperature rise to 315 ppm (vol), by which time the mgt stands at +2c and vegetation is rampant rapidly using up the carbon dioxide for its growth. Eventually, this results in a fall in carbon dioxide concentration with mgt falling back down over the next 125,000 years to –6c, with the vegetation being killed off by the cold, so starting a new cycle. So before you are led to believe that you actually have anything to do with global warming it is worth reflecting that your contribution to the carbon dioxide cycle is so small as to have little to do with it. Put another way mankind is not in control but government will be controlling you enough to think that paying them will somehow save future generations when in reality human population will go the way of vegetation.

Lucinda Ball

02/14/2007